For all their pious claims to being the standard-bearers and guardians of national security since President Trump was elected in 2016, Democrats sure do have a lot of operatives getting picked up as spies for China.

The latest came out of the woodwork from New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's office.

According to the Associated Press:

A former New York state government official who worked for former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and current Gov. Kathy Hochul was charged Tuesday with acting as an undisclosed agent of the Chinese government, federal prosecutors revealed in a sprawling indictment.

Linda Sun, who held numerous posts in New York state government before rising to the rank of deputy chief of staff for Hochul, was arrested Tuesday morning along with her husband, Chris Hu, at their $3.5 million home on Long Island.

Sun and Hu are expected to make an initial court appearance Tuesday afternoon, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office in Brooklyn said.

Prosecutors said Sun, at the request of Chinese officials, blocked representatives of the Taiwanese government from having access to high-level officials in New York state, shaped New York governmental messaging to align with the priorities of the Chinese government and attempted to facilitate a trip to China for a high-level politician in New York, the indictment said. Hu is charged with money laundering conspiracy, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and misuse of means of identification.

The New York Post said the cozy relationship with the Chicoms seemed to be very rewarding indeed for the pair:

The damning 64-page indictment accuses Linda Sun, 41, and her husband, Christopher Hu, 40, of laundering and splurging their corrupt gains on a gaudy $4 million Manhasset mansion, a $2 million second home in a Honolulu high-rise and luxury cars such as 2024 Ferrari Roma.

Sun shadily used her position under Hochul and Cuomo – who are unnamed but clearly referenced in the court documents – to turn the governor’s office into a virtual mouthpiece for the People’s Republic of China and Chinese Community Party, the bombshell indictment contends.

... and ...

The official’s personal chef had even prepared “Nanjing-style salted ducks” that were delivered to Sun’s parents, the indictment states.

Investigators found four such salty duck quid pro quos, as well as a dinner for Sun’s family at Huang’s house, documents state.

Other reports have stated that they were given tickets to Chinese balletic dance performances, too.

But mostly, it seems to have been the mansions and millions.

It's a shocking case of cash for influence, and the Chicoms must have been snickering up their sleeves that New York would have such a willing apparent partner.

Yet it's not the first Democrat who's been caught in bed with the Chinese.

In the case of Rep. Eric Swalwell, he was literally in bed with a Chinese honeypot on campaign fundraising matters.

Meanwhile, over on the other side of the Bay, Senate Judiciary Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein, had a driver in hock with the Chinese for nearly 20 years, listening in on her every conversation and reporting back to his masters in Beijing.

In New York again, Mayor Eric Adams seemed palsy-walsy with more Chicoms who did their worst to shut dissidents out of an annual parade:

What has become an annual parade in mid-town Manhattan for Asian Americans was set up with the blessing of Mayor Eric Adams by the CEO of a company that is a registered foreign agent of China, according to documents obtained exclusively by Newsweek.

The findings raise new questions over Chinese influence operations in the United States, and particularly in New York, where Adams and some other top politicians have previously received campaign donations from members of groups linked to China's ruling Communist Party. Newsweek has reported on the extensive network of such groups in the U.S.

These were the easy ones, the ones that allowed the FBI spy hunters and press to move in for the reveal.

There are also muddled ones about which not enough is known, such as the multiple trips to China taken by Kamala Harris's running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, which were accompanied by loudly pro-Beijing statements during his lifetime, and Hunter Biden's laptop dealings with top Chinese officials, one of whom, he crowed, was the chief of Chinese intelligence. Office space was shared and millions of dollars passed between hands.

Further in the horizon, there were also the Clintons, both Bill and Hillary, who have been caught with their pants down on China. Bill had numerous campaign finance scandals involving Chinese-American go-betweens, and Hillary ran a pay-to-play operation through the Clinton Foundation as President Obama's Secretary of State, with Bill at the helm.

Not all of these cases may be espionage, but they do signal undue influence of Chinese players in American affairs -- and it's significant that it's mostly coming from the Democrats.

It would make sense that it does, given their socialist orientation which has gotten worse in the past decade, which had to have made the Chinese overlords happy.

Democrats also have been the party of the swamp, where everything becomes a consultant contract and loyalty to the U.S. is a nonstarter. That might explain why neverTrump Max Boot's wife was recently charged with acting as an unregistered foreign agent on behalf of South Korea.

The bottom line here is that they always have been the party of flag-burners, and one-world government, not loyalty to nation and certainly not national security, despite their skinsuit claims to care about it when all they want to do is Get Trump.

With that in mind, national loyalty wouldn't mean much to them, and with their tendency to throw money at every problem, what's a little money coming their way?

Lastly, espionage cases aren't what they used to be. In the past, a conviction would merit a long prison sentence, and maybe even the death penalty. Today, it's a few months in the can and back to the old swamp. That's a pretty weak price to pay for what amounts to treason.

Democrats have brought us this and it shouldn's surprise anyone that they are as easy as aphids to catch by lawmen assigned to this duty. How many more of them are there?

Image: S. Kopp, via Wikimedia Commons // public domain